Benefits by Including the Customer in the POS Quality Assurance Process

September 27, 2017

When implementing a point of sale system in retail, the Quality Assurance process can make the difference between a positive or negative shopping experience. Regardless of the vertical in which you operate, a retail point of sale solution should ensure a business’s success at every transaction. In fact, when retailers break free from the classical roles of Quality Assurance and focus on a different perspective, such as the end user or customer perspective, so many valuable and often overlooked details can be uncovered from this simple shift.

In many cases, the QA process is initiated and tested within the IT department. However, employees and customers operate at the heart of the point of sale systems for retail. By synthesizing the observations and actions of end users who are experiencing the checkout procedure in real time, IT and non-IT staff can work together to create a more seamless QA process.

RPE solutions recently released a white paper detailing more in depth the benefits retailers will receive by including the end user or customer in the QA process.

Move the System to the Open

Most of the time you will see lab point of sale systems for retail tucked away on a table or counter during the QA process. What if you pulled that lab table away from the wall so you can test the system from the customers’ perspectives by including them in the process?

The IT staff is very familiar with the retail point of sale system and can quickly go through the QA process. A customer or end user—such as a store associate—may be navigating the system for the first time. Unfamiliarity with the keypad or determining if a card should be swiped or inserted in a chip reader can slow down the checkout experience. A thorough testing may reveal confusing prompts, card swiping issues, or time out freezes due to customers hesitation. It can also assist in determining the level of training needed at the store level.

While retailers are anxious and must meet deadlines to implement a point of sale solution, it’s worth investing time upfront in the QA process to avoid issues in the long term. The checkout experience is the last point of connection the customer has at the store and can have a positive or negative lasting impression. To learn more about the benefits of QA process testing from the end user perspective, please view the white paper here.